Inflation slowed in July

[SaysWho?]

CPI Live Updates: U.S. Inflation Slowed in July - The New York Times

WWW.NYTIMES.COM

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The Consumer Price Index climbed 8.5 percent in July, a bigger slowdown than expected, but inflation may remain uncomfortably high for some time.

 

Quote

Inflation cooled in July as gas prices and airfares fell, a welcome reprieve for consumers and economic policymakers but not yet a conclusive sign that price increases are turning a corner.

 

The Consumer Price Index climbed by 8.5 percent in the year through July, compared to 9.1 percent the prior month, a bigger slowdown than economists had projected. After stripping out food and fuel costs to get a sense of underlying price pressures, prices climbed by 5.9 percent through July, matching the previous reading.

 

• On a monthly basis, the price index did not move at all in July. That’s because fuel prices, airfares and used cars declined in price, offsetting increases in rent and food costs.
• Core inflation was also slower than economists had expected on a monthly basis, climbing by 0.3 percent. In June, that figure was 0.7 percent.
• Today’s report is probably welcome news at the White House and the Federal Reserve, both of which have been waiting for inflation to decelerate.
• But it’s easy to overstate how much July’s slowdown matters. Inflation is still abnormally high. The decline owed in large part to gas prices, and they can always jump again.
• There are some real reasons to believe inflation will slow in the months ahead: Supply chain pressures, for instance, show signs of easing.
• But there are also reasons to worry. Wage growth remains rapid. And housing costs, particularly rents, continue to climb, which could keep inflation high for some time.

 

Gas prices have fallen for 57 days straight.

 

The CPI website with information. Energy/Gas prices dropped, which offset anything that rose.

 

Consumer Price Index Summary - 2022 M07 Results

WWW.BLS.GOV

 

[SaysWho?]

More NBC analysis:

A major reason for the relief at the pump has been aggressive moves by the Federal Reserve to increase interest rates. By making borrowing more expensive, the U.S. central bank hopes to curb demand for goods ands services and therefore put downward pressure on prices.

 

And it seems to be working, with demand for gasoline falling alongside oil prices, which have declined from more than $120 dollars per barrel in June to about $97 per barrel on Tuesday.

 

Even with those declines, Federal Reserve officials are signaling they will continue their hard stance against further inflation. For one thing, they face a U.S. economy that continues to add jobs at a breakneck pace. Last week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said the U.S. economy stacked up another 528,000 new payrolls — a sign that demand for labor remains strong.

 

And pay for private-sector workers is also climbing at a pace that is putting upward pressure on prices. In the second quarter, wages and salaries grew 5.8% compared with a year earlier, the fastest rate for records tracing back to 2001, although that is still below the current inflation rate.

 

 

CNBC:

 

On a monthly basis, prices were flat as energy prices broadly declined 4.6% and gasoline fell 7.7%. That offset a 1.1% monthly gain in food prices and a 0.5% increase in shelter costs.

[Brian]

Bumping the better thread 

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

8 minutes ago, ManUtdRedDevils said:

Bumping the better thread 

[Jason]

1 hour ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said: